Fear spread, coursing through her veins. Each step felt like lifting bricks from one area to another. She wished she was invisible. Blood rushed to her soft pale cheeks turning them an embarrassing shade of piglet pink. Icy winds weren't helping, knifing her from every direction since she left the comfort of John's car. Sea salt somehow managed to find its way through the air to her lungs, filling her with a sense of complete calmness, easing the anxiety manifesting within her.
Breathe in. Breathe out. She thought, repeating till her breathing was even.
Her frizzy red hair made her the centre of attention. That and the two guys who stood beside her – or more accurately shielding her. John and Simon.
Slim but toned. Good looking but nerdy. Simon was completely clueless as to what puberty had done to his physique unlike Johnny. Johnathan Christopher Morgenstern, older brother to Clarissa Adele Morgenstern- the art freak- was the captain of the football team and tied most popular guy in school. Whilst Clary was cursed with fire for hair, John was blessed with looks associated with God's and he knew it. Girls often drooled over Johns hair and the way that even when messy it just seemed perfect. It even had the perfect contrast to his sun-kissed skin, being platinum blonde, the complete opposite of Clary's fiery locks that couldn't be tamed. John was a play boy which added to the long lists of reasons why Seelie hated Clary.
Seelie had fallen for the playboy before he became popular, back when he was just Clary's older brother. But when John heard about 'the cafeteria incident', he started a brutal rumor about her shitting herself in 5th grade. Seelie got her heart ripped out of her chest and she blamed Clary. After that Seelie became a cold-hearted bitch driven by revenge and determination. A deadly combination.
Especially for Clary.
Clary couldn't understand it. How could someone be so cruel over a guy? Her brother at that?
Clary had never had a first kiss, let alone a boyfriend. She had tried kissing Simon in middle school, so she would have experience before high school, but it failed miserably. Both parties felt so uncomfortable that they burst into a fit of giggles. So, Clary remained a clueless 'lip-virgin'.
'I have to go Clare but find me at break. I'll be at the bleachers' said Johnny, his big brother side making an unexpected appearance. He hardly ever did that but when he did Clary loved him for it – but she'd never admit that out loud.
'I'll be fine John. Isabelle is just over there and whilst Simon is catching flies in his mouth gawking at her, he's beside me.' was Clary's reply.
Isabelle was wearing a violet plunging neckline camisole, a jean jacket that her and Clary had only bought two days earlier, a white skater skirt and a pair of 5-inch heels as her favorite thing to say was 'nothing less than 5 inches'.
Isabelle applied that to more than just heels.
'Girl you look great but what happened to wearing skirts from now on?' Clary had promised at the weekend that she would start wearing skirts, but she didn't mean from that moment.
'Didn't realise there was a tornado this morning, Red.' Came the irritatingly, smooth, cocky, arrogant, retort of none other than the school's Golden boy, personal man-whore and suitable Seelie's sister Kaelie's ex.
The other J.C. Johnathan Christopher Herondale. The golden God. Man-whore.
Jace fucking Herondale.
Isabelle's god-brother was nothing short of a pain in Clary's ass. Always annoying her with stupid childish names. Always teasing her. He made Clary's life even more miserable. It was only fitting that he dated Clary's enemy's sister. The perfect duo. Too bad it wouldn't last. Jace had a different girl on his arm every week. It disgusted Clary. She sometimes retorted to his comment by stating that at least she didn't have multiple STD's. Man-whore.
Once, after spending the day at Izzy's, clary came home crying as Jace had taken a pair of scissors to Clary's hair. Even though Clary hated her hair she believed in common decency such as not to cut a girl's hair without asking at least. The worse thing was that he kept a hold of the lock of fire claiming it was no longer Clary's problem. The cheek.
When Clary told Jocelyn, her mom told her that sometimes boys were mean to the girls they liked because they are scared that the girl will realise that she is too good for said boy and will reject them or just to get their attention. Clary just laughed in her mother's face. The absolute absurdity of the thought.
Jace liked Clary. No. Jace couldn't like Clary he hated her.
She had everything he didn't. Two happily married parents and John She was surrounded by unconditional love. Sure, Jace had a family by choice, the Lightwoods. They were his true family, who cared for him and loved him as if he was their own. But at the end of the day he always had to return to the Herondale Manor where his father held resident.
Jace had one biological parent left but Stephen wasn't a parent, as far as Jace was concerned he just a sperm donor. Both had suffered an unimaginable loss but instead of confiding in one another, they blamed each other. When Jace's mom Celine died Stephen became a work fanatic alcoholic. He never had time for him. Once Stephen came home drunk and discovered that Jace had lost a fight at school, another time Jace's report card included a B. Both had the same affect on Stephen. He became a mad man, full of anger and driven by alcohol. Jace knew his father blamed him for his mother's death and deep down he felt he was right; but he never knew how much his father blamed him till that night. Jace started staying at the Lightwoods as often as possible, Stephen started taking more and more business trips for a longer period of time. Whenever the Lightwoods asked Jace any questions about bruises or scars, he would simply ignore them and tease Clary.
Clary was his distraction.
But Clary didn't know that. Clary believed Jace hated her.
'Didn't realise this school allowed jerks like you to wonder around halls hunting for the next notch in your belt.' Clary retorted back to his tornado comment. She had tried to tame her hair it wasn't her fault it wouldn't cooperate.
'aww. Is Clare-Bear jealous?' His eyes searched for a reaction like a lion stalking its prey.
'You wish asshole.' But her eyes told a different story.